Industry corridor may get land near IGI

Industry corridor may get land near IGI

Source: Times of IndiaDated: 4th May 2013

NEW DELHI: A major portion of a 130-acre prime land adjacent to the Indira Gandhi International Airport ( IGIA), may go to the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC), a government firm, for a song.

Government sources said that the company wants about 100 acres spread over two sectors in Dwarka from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for developing a complex that would include a convention centre, hotels and luxury housing/service apartments.

The patch spread over Sector 25&26 in Dwarka sub-city was originally earmarked for relocation of wholesale trade centres in central Delhi, including Sadar Bazar, Nai Sadak and Khari Baoli, which are known for large-scale grain, paper and chemicals markets, in Master Plan-2021. Five more such areas were identified in the Master Plan-2021. The plan document says that the new wholesale markets are planned “as counter markets to cater to the demands of the growing population of Delhi only, near the rail and road entry points of NCTD. These should be linked with the proposed integrated freight complexes where the wholesale business could be operated more efficiently in a better environment”.

Sources said the task of developing an integrated freight development complex spread over 30 acres might be entrusted with the DDA.

Government sources said that DMIC Development Corporation (DMICDC) has moved its proposal, and the Union urban development ministry recently held high-level meeting on the issue. It is learnt that while the UD ministry is in favour of allotting it at lesser price than the market rate, a section of DDA officials are hesitant since the market value of the land would be around Rs 10,000 crore.

Sources said that in a worst-case scenario, the DDA would have to allot the land for institutional use and per acre rate for such a plot is Rs 3 crore. In case the entire land is allotted to DMICDC as an institutional plot, the corporation has to cough up only Rs 300 crore.

“There are many within government who don’t agree to the proposal of giving the land at a concessional rate,” a government official said.

But there are others who have argued that DDA should focus on how to allow most efficient use of its land. “It may bring manifold investment and create job opportunities,” an urban development ministry official said.